Being Brave

At the beginning of August, Dr. Kim and I were in Washington DC for the Annual Convention of the American Psychological Association. We were together at a social to celebrate the Early Career Psychologists of the Society of Counseling Psychology. At this social, there was a portion of the evening that was used as an open mic night. I am not the type of person to get up and share a song or spoken word, but luckily there were other psychologists that were more than willing. One psychologist in particular stood out. She shared the song Brave by Sara Bareilles and had the audience get up and dance along. If you haven't seen the video, it will make more sense when you see  it.

It was after that song, that the psychologist asked people to come up and share their brave moment. She shared that she had been making an effort to be more brave in her every day life and encouraged others to do the same. Dr. Kim went up and shared that her brave moment was the decision for her and myself to relocate to Minneapolis and open up Twin Cities Psychological Services, Ltd. Since that day, in early August, I have been reflecting on small and larger ways that I have been brave and how others demonstrate bravery in their day to day interactions.

Of course, I agree that the biggest act of braveness that I have done in the past year or so is leaving my job at the College of William and Mary Counseling Center and moving back to Minneapolis to open a practice with a colleague and friend. There was much thought, planning, and decision making that went into the move...but at the end of the day it still took some bravery. So far we have spent hours and hours working to get on insurance panels, working to market our new practice, putting together Ikea furniture, and learning all about running a business. I have no doubt that all the work will pay off, and that clients will find a practice that really is focused on their well-being and providing them a safe, judgment free, and genuine space to do the work that helps them achieve their full-potential. 

There are smaller things that I have been thinking about that also reflect bravery. One of these smaller things is this blog. I have been thinking of blogging for months, but continued to have a hard time putting words onto the page. I'll be honest, much of the difficulty was related to self scrutiny. Will I write well enough? Will others be interested in what I have to say? Can I be myself and let some of my personality out in the blog and also demonstrate the professionalism that is important to me? These are all things I still wonder and even worry about as I write this first post....but I have decided to just dismiss these thoughts and push forward. I have decided that my writing likely will not be perfect and will have some errors, that not everyone will like what I have to say, and that I can be  myself on my blog and be professional.  I hope to use this blog to write about things that are relevant to my work as a psychologist, to comment on current events, to let you know about new and exciting things at Twin Cities Psychological Services, Ltd., and to just share interesting (to me) information. My goal is to post at least a few times a month (writing that here so that I have a visible commitment to others). I know that next week I will talk about colleges, especially since Dr. Kim and I will be traveling back to my alma mater for an open house. Can't wait to get back on the University of Minnesota campus, as I have so many positive memories from my time there. 

If you took time to read this far, thank you. I hope that you take time to check out the TCPS website and Facebook page as well. I also hope that you take time to think of things that you currently do that are brave. It could be something huge, or it could be something you do everyday. Some examples to get you thinking include calling someone out on an offensive joke, giving an opinion that does not match the thought of the group, taking a risk to introduce yourself to someone new, or speaking up in class or at work. Think of your brave moments and celebrate them! Maybe even dance along to Sara Bareilles!!

Until next time,
Bobby
Robert L. Reis II, Ph.D., LP